WASHINGTON: Indian-Americans have raised U.S. $ 75,000 at a recent fund raiser in California to build a state- of-the-art 200-bed super specialty eye-hospital in Bihar. The Shankara Eye Foundation and the Bihar Foundation U.S.A. have pledged to raise U.S. $ 4 million towards the initial capital cost of the project that aims to conduct 25,000 free surgeries every year. It would benefit more than one lakh people of Bihar every year,

said Rai Rajiv Kumar Sinha, vice chairman of Bihar Foundation of USA. The foundation held its fund raiser in the last week of June in Cupertino Community hall, San Francisco bay area, a media release said on Saturday. The annual function of Bihar Foundation was attended by eminent Bihari-Americans. Dr Jayant Kumar, project officer of the foundation, announced the U.S. $ 75,000 donation on behalf of the project core committee as the first foundational step towards success of the project.